Duality
by allirequest
Summary: Prompt-ficlet. Introspection. Sometimes, Rukia is jealous. One-shot.


**Title:** Duality

**Prompt: **Jealous

**Character(s):** Rukia, Ichigo.

**Word Count: **961**  
**

**Notes: **Okay, so I did a little bit of math for this one; it's probably common sense, but for any questions that may pop up, there is reasoning behind my logic in saying Rukia has been a shinigami for forty years. In the manga, Byakuya states that fifty years ago, he lost his wife to a sickness; he then spends one year searching for Rukia, who he finds in the Academy. She then takes… however many more years to graduate, so… there you go, roughly forty years :)

**Disclaimer:** Still not mine... I'm still working for the weekend, but it's nowhere in sight. Ugh. So I'm back to playing in other people's playgrounds when they aren't looking, hoping for that someday when I can own something of my very own :P

~*~

She didn't want to be, but Kuchiki Rukia was actually… jealous of Ichigo sometimes. She had spent the past forty years honing her skills as a shinigami, working hard to make a name for herself. Granted, she already _had_ a name that everyone recognized, but that wasn't the point—she wished she could be known beyond the Kuchiki family name, prompting her to work harder.

Within the Soul Society, she was already known for her skill and determination. Rukia was naturally gifted with kidō, even moreso than with her zanpakutō; she and Renji's classmate, Hinamori Momo, had gotten along splendidly during their Academy years. Renji had pretended he didn't understood, but then again, even with both girls tutoring him, he had still managed to have his kidō explode in his face every time. He just didn't get the delicate nature of shared interests or of kidō, but that was okay.

Rukia's kidō was formidable, but her zanpakutō certainly drew attention as well. Sode no Shirayuki was widely hailed as the most beautiful snow/ice zanpakutō in Soul Society, a flattering title. If a shinigami's zanpakutō was a manifestation of their soul, what did that title mean about her soul? Even being beautiful, however, she still packed a punch, though paling in comparison to the mastery of the elements that the prodigy captain, Hitsugaya Tōshirō of the Tenth, wielded with his blade, Hyôrinmaru.

Her years of work and practice, however, seemed to matter little when compared with Ichigo. He had come into his powers with a blaze of natural ability, then gone on to defeat every single odd in his way, shattering every expectation. The ease with which he went about this, however, almost made him hard to define; he could never fit into a pre-defined box, because he was almost larger than life.

Rukia was jealous of Ichigo, the same boy who had become one of her closest friends. She hated feeling this way, but she at least recognized that it was only to be expected. How could she ever compare to the rapid explosion of impossible, bold advancement that was Ichigo?

Sighing, Rukia pushed a lock of hair from her eyes absently. Below, she watched Ichigo play with his sisters, a rare moment of peace in the world she had thrust him into. She couldn't help the small smile that slipped across her lips—who would have thought that the brash, bold Kurosaki Ichigo was so good with kids?

It was hard to believe that the gruff teen, barely holding back a smile, was one of the strongest shinigami around. Within a matter of months, he had managed to attain not only his shikai—nevermind that it was impossible to reseal—but his bankai, growing strong enough to hold his own against the strongest captains of the Gotei 13. It was impressive…

But it was enough to make Rukia doubt herself enough. These moods never lasted long, thankfully, but they were enough to be annoying. She was a capable warrior, more than worthy of a seated position in the Thirteenth Division, and yet somehow in mere months, this human had surpassed her. He was powerful, growing stronger all the time, and she had actually needed to be rescued by him…

Furthermore, Ichigo had a family—a delightfully funny, caring family… even if they were a bit strange. It had been a long time since Rukia had felt included in such a family… her days growing up in Rukongai with Renji were gone, leaving her distanced from everyone around her. Renji had always been there, a constant, protective force in her life, but it was hard to spend as much time with him anymore since they were in separate divisions. Sure, Rukia had Byakuya, but it had sometimes felt as if he didn't even notice she was there. It had been worse before he had at least explained himself after Ichimaru had hurt him, but even now he was distant.

Then again, it was hard to imagine the great Kuchiki Byakuya being chased playfully by a younger sibling, holding a soccer ball above his head.

Byakuya had loosened up after that, however, actually talking with Rukia like more of an equal, which was… nice.

On the other hand, however, Ichigo had even beaten her in _that_ aspect; it was a grudging respect to be sure, but Byakuya _respected_ Kurosaki. Both of them would almost certainly die before admit that, though. Surprisingly, they had more in common than one would think at first glance.

Below, Karin finally managed to tackle Ichigo, bringing him to the ground as the ball rolled to Yuzu. The youngest child watched her siblings, though, laughing as Ichigo pushed Karin off and began to tickle her. Thankfully, Ichigo was still able to spend time with his family like this, to enjoy his life—

And it didn't hurt that she could join him in school. The discomfort of being in a gigai was expendable compared to how relaxing it was to go to school and try all sorts of new foods. Ichigo had done his best to include her, despite his gruff attitude at first. His friends and even his family had welcomed her eagerly, making her feel whole and warm for the first time in a while. She had friends in Soul Society, but expectations had always prevented her from getting too close.

So what if he was stronger than her? Things could always change; besides, that dolt always underestimated others. She wouldn't be one of the ones he underestimated—Kuchiki Rukia had more than a few surprises up her sleeves!

Jealousy was fleeting; thankfully, her gratefulness and affection for the lunkhead were more permanent, especially since there was still quite a bit more he needed to learn.

~*~


End file.
